BEFORE You Win the Lottery – 10 Things to Do

In your heart, you know you are going to win a lotto jackpot eventually. Or else why do you buy lottery tickets? Here is some advice for your head and heart while you get ready to win.

1) Don’t make promises you do not intend to keep. It is easy to tell someone: “If I won the lottery, I would pay off your mortgage” or “When I win the lottery, I will buy you a new car” Such statements, even meant as sympathy for another’s plight, can come back to haunt you. You may forget you said it. Yet when you do win the lottery, that person to whom you uttered your promise will remember vividly and expect to collect their “due” And if you pay off the mortgage or buy that car, it will not mean as much if it had not been “expected” or “promised”

2) Don’t trust anyone to hold your lottery tickets before the drawing. When large sums of money are involved, it is surprising how a long-standing friendship or family tie can become meaningless. Be forewarned: Buy your own lottery tickets — or at least have them in your own safekeeping before the drawing takes place. As an extra precaution, sign the back of your winning lottery tickets immediately. After the drawing, possession is 99 percent of the law.

3) Stick to a budget. Don’t play with money you are afraid to lose. Scared money seldom wins. Keep it fun so that your attitude remains positive. Enjoy it with others by pooling your money with friends, family or co-workers. Not only is it more enjoyable playing with others, but it also stretches your lotto budget. When you pool your money with others, you can afford to use the larger lotto wheels.

4) Have your lotto pool sign a Pooling Agreement. Pooling your money with others to share in more lottery tickets is a great idea, but do not pool your money with anyone without a signed agreement. You may think you are risking only a few dollars. But if the lottery ticket wins, you have put at risk potential millions.

5) Don’t be afraid to skip a drawing. To further stretch your lotto dollar, play a large wheeling system once a month and skip the other drawings in between. Or use the money you might have spent (but didn’t) on some other form of entertainment. If you have a multiple prize win, you can afford to spend more on lottery tickets next time, such as playing two or more lotto wheels. You may be on a hot streak. When you don’t win, stay on a self-imposed budget until you win again. But keep in mind, there is one thing all lottery jackpot winners have in common: They all bought a lottery ticket!

6) Keep your lottery tickets safe. Keep your lottery tickets in a safe place and check them immediately after the drawing. Collect your small prizes (under $600) right away before the expiration date. Most states give you only 30 days to claim small wins from lottery agents. After that, you must mail them in or visit a claim center.

7) Save your losing lottery tickets. Save all of your losing lottery tickets because they are tax deductible, dollar for dollar, against your lottery wins. Receipts for other gambling losses can also be deducted against lottery wins. When you win even a second prize, you will be glad to have those deductions at tax time.

8) Play some low-odds games. If you want to start winning sooner rather than later, invest the greater portion of your lottery budget on the cash-5 game offered in your state. You will win more prizes more often when you play the lower odds pick-5 games. Top prize might be only a hundred thousand dollars or so. Nevertheless, I guarantee that when you win one, you will be very, very happy!

9) Trust your hunches. Although my strategies are scientific, based on mathematical probability, I am a great believer in playing hunches, too. If you feel strongly about a certain number, play it. Your inner conscious mind becomes stronger and more accurate as you use it. Even your hunch muscle has to be exercised to work efficiently. It is very important to think of yourself as a lucky person — to think of yourself as a winner.

10) Practice saying, “No,” before you win the lottery. The most important word any jackpot winner can learn to say is an emphatic “No!” Many jackpot winners have gone bankrupt because they allowed freeloading friends, relatives, neighbors, and others to bleed them dry. If you think you don’t have the backbone to harden your heart against endless sad tales of need and greed, then do not accept your lottery win in a lump sum. Opt for the annuity payout and collect your lottery win in annual installments.